Green Tomato and Stem Ginger Cake with Streusel Topping is a revelation if you have never thought to put tomatoes in a cake. This gluten-free version is deeply flavourful and sweetly spiced with a gentle nudge of caramelised ginger.
Another one of my classic bakes making its gluten-free debut this week. Last week my Blackcurrant White Chocolate and Thyme Muffins had their moment in the spotlight and now I have a newly revamped Green Tomato and Stem Ginger Cake with Streusel Topping rising from the archives like a phoenix from the ashes.
I first published a recipe for Green Tomato and Stem Ginger Cake with Streusel Topping back in 2014 as a wheat cake. I made it a bunch of times but never got around to taking decent photos of the cake which was so popular at my market stall back then. I have no idea why it has taken me so long to switch the recipe up to a gluten-free version but I am thrilled I finally did it as I had forgotten how amazing this cake is. It goes without saying that I prefer the gluten-free version of the cake as I am a staunch alternative flour advocate but the sweet rice flour and oat flour really do give this beautifully flavourful sponge even more character.
The following words are as written in 2014 since it describes how I came up for the idea for the recipe in the first place. I basically cribbed it off my sister.
When my sister first told me she had made this cake a few weeks ago with the last remaining green tomatoes in her vegetable garden I immediately thought that this was one of her weird experiments and dismissed it.
The idea stayed with me though and I couldn’t stop thinking of this green tomato cake that she had been raving about. I’m a huge fan of green tomatoes and the thought of incorporating them into my baking was intriguing. So I called her back up a few days later and asked her a bit more about it. She said the texture was incredibly moist but the closest thing she could see that it resembled was a carrot cake. Suddenly it all made sense and I kicked myself for not seeing how this was the perfect use for the firm, tangy tomatoes that are still hanging round well into Autumn, especially when spiced up with cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
I thought I had missed out though as I hadn’t seen any green tomatoes for a while and assumed their time had passed for the season. Then on a chance visit to Stoke Newington Farmers’ Market I saw huge mounds of the these emerald green beauties glinting in the frost bitten sun. I am useless when it comes to understanding quantities of things and rather than be floundering with too few tomatoes I bought bags of them, just in case.
There wasn’t a huge amount of recipes for green tomato cake online but those that were all emanated from the southern states of America which is understandable since they are the guys that brought us the sublime fried green tomatoes and seem to understand this ingredient better than most. It does seem that the cake is treated much like any vegetable cake with plenty of sugar, oil instead of butter and spicing aplenty. I took my Autumn theme a bit more seriously though and dotted diced stem ginger throughout, and topped the cake with a sweetly buttered crunchy streusel crown. The streusel topping turned out to be a wonderful adornment, making the cake taste almost like a deliciously moist fruit crumble. The pockets of juicy tomato are so enticing and add another texture every now and then to the now complex structure of the cake. It’s just as well then that the assembling of the cake is so darn simple.
I can’t convince you enough to make this cake, vegetables cakes are one of the cornerstones of my cake stall and this Green Tomato and Stem Ginger Cake is one of the best. Make it now whilst the glut of green tomatoes is at its peak.
If you make the Green Tomato and Stem Ginger Cake with Streusel Topping please leave a comment below and/or give the recipe a rating. If you make the recipe I’d also love it if you tag me on instagram. It is so lovely for me to see your creations and variations of my recipes.
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 90 minutes |
| Servings |
14 people
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- 225 g caster sugar
- 225 g light brown sugar
- 240 ml light olive oil
- 40 ml stem ginger syrup
- 3 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 170 g sweet rice flour
- 170 g oat flour
- 35 g potato flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 350 g green tomatoes diced
- 75 g stem ginger finely diced, about 4 balls
- 20 g sweet rice flour
- 20 g oat flour
- 85 g demerara sugar
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 50 g cold butter
- 2 tablespoons oats
Ingredients
For the streusel topping:
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- Pre-heat the oven to 160° and line and grease a 20cm deep round cake tin
- First make the streusel topping by rubbing together the flours, sugar, cinnamon, butter and oats until the mixture is crumbly, then set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl beat together the caster sugar, light brown sugar, olive oil, stem ginger syrup, eggs and vanilla until completely combined.
- In a separate bowl sift together the flours, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and ground ginger.
- Add the flour to the sugar and egg mixture and beat until well combined.
- Stir in the green tomatoes and the stem ginger until evenly distributed then pour into the cake tin.
- Sprinkle the streusel topping over the cake mixture.
- Place the cake in the oven and bake for about 90-100 minutes until an inserted cocktail stick comes out clean. You might want to check the cake two thirds of the way through its cooking time and cover the top with foil if the streusel topping is getting too brown.
- Remove the cake from the oven and leave for 5 minutes in the tin before turning out to finish cooling on a wire rack.
If you fell in love with the original recipe made with wheat flour and want to continue using that version, then use the same recipe as above but substitute the sweet rice flour, oat flour and potato flour in the cake for 375g plain all-purpose flour, and the sweet rice flour and oat flour in the streusel topping for 40g plain all-purpose flour.
SHOP THE RECIPE
The cake tins I always use are these PME Anodised Aluminium Round Cake Pan 8 x 4-Inch Deep
It’s not easy to buy certified gluten-free sweet rice flour in the UK, for some reason Bob’s Red Mill is astronomically expensive. However I have finally found a brand which is 100% certified gluten-free and it’s fantastic. The brand is yourhealthstore Premium Gluten Free Sweet Rice Flour (glutinous) 1kg
Oat flour can be picked up at most health food shops and if I run out that’s where I head to. However, like all alternative flours it can be expensive so I find the most economical way is to buy it online. I go through bags of the stuff as it’s the flour I use most regularly so I like to buy in bulk. My favourite brand is Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Whole Grain Oat Flour 400 g (Pack of 4)
If you like this recipe then you may like…
Golden Beetroot Carrot Cake {gluten-free}
Plum Brown Butter Almond Cake {gluten-free}
Vinegar Cake
Hello, so lovely of you to drop by. I am Georgina. I bake a lot, eat a lot and love writing about my gluten-free kitchen adventures here. I run a gluten-free cake business and have a stall at the local farmer’s market selling my cakes and preserves. I have 2 cats, 1 dog, 1 husband, a delightful toddler who runs me ragged and a newborn baby boy.
